Expert Analysis

• NY's UCC Updates Spell Change In Digital Asset Lending

  

  Given the state’s role as a preferred jurisdiction for financing transactions, New York’s recent enactment of Uniform Commercial Code amendments, which establish control as a central concept for determining who has rights to a digital asset, will encourage nationwide growth toward a more technology-neutral approach to secured transactions, say attorneys at Manatt.

• What Prop 65 Listings For Welding Fumes, Drugs Mean For Cos.

  

  With California poised to add welding chemicals and three medications to its list of known carcinogens under Proposition 65, businesses must assess risks from nontraditional pharmaceutical dispensing, occupational and environmental exposures to welding operations, and downstream exposures from the manufacture of both types of substances, says Gregory Berlin at Alston & Bird.

• West Coast Health Cos. Must Brace For Federal Enforcement

  

  In light of the U.S. Department of Justice's newly established West Coast strike force targeting healthcare fraud across Northern California, Arizona and Nevada, health organizations will need to prioritize knowledge, vigilance and operational discipline to reduce exposure from potentially parallel criminal and civil investigations, says Michael Beckwith at Dickinson Wright.

• How Trump's Nuclear EO Has Transformed The NRC

  

  In the year since President Donald Trump issued Executive Order No. 14300, directing sweeping reforms of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the agency has revised key oversight programs and proposed major rulemakings and new licensing frameworks — but the NRC must continue to center transparency and trust as key values, says Brooke Clark at Morgan Lewis.

• Opinion

  Agentic AI And Securities Law: Steps Congress Should Take

  

  Agentic artificial intelligence technology doesn't fit comfortably into the existing securities regulatory landscape, so Congress should avoid repeating the mistakes that led to the legal uncertainty crypto companies and investors have faced over the past decade-plus by providing a legislative framework before AI fully matures, says Joseph A. Hall at Davis Polk.

• Weighing Trade-Offs Of SEC's Semiannual Reporting Proposal

  

  Though public companies could benefit from a recent U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposal that would allow them to file earnings reports just twice a year, widespread adoption could also increase market volatility, complicate capital raising and fragment disclosure standards to the detriment of issuers and investors, say attorneys at Seward & Kissel.

• Opinion

  At High Court, Oil Cos.' Suncor Preemption Claims Fall Short

  

  In Suncor Energy v. Boulder County, pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, oil and gas companies argue that municipalities' climate deception claims are equivalent to emissions standards for their industry — but the suit is ultimately incapable of imposing such standards, say Thomas McGarity at the University of Texas School of Law and James Goodwin at the Center for Progressive Reform.

• What Colorado AI Law's Major Rewrite Means For Employers

  

  Colorado's landmark law regulating employers' use of artificial intelligence tools was recently replaced with a narrower regime that eliminates many burdensome obligations, but still imposes a host of requirements focused on transparency and accountability, say attorneys at Proskauer.

• Operational AI Washing: The Next Frontier Of Fiduciary Risk

  

  While there are still no final Delaware decisions applying Caremark specifically to artificial intelligence governance failures, previous case law provides a blueprint, so the question for boards is whether their governance architectures will satisfy Caremark when the first cases are decided, say attorneys at Akerman.

• 3 Disgorgement Questions Linger After Justices' SEC Ruling

  

  While the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision in Sripetch v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission avoided placing new limits on the SEC’s disgorgement powers, it passed over several questions, including whether the commission can seek disgorgement when returning the money to investors isn't possible, says David Slovick at Kopecky Schumacher.

• A Look At The Court's Next Steps In Live Nation Antitrust Case

  

  Following a recent jury verdict that Live Nation and Ticketmaster operated as a monopoly to fix ticket prices, a New York federal court stands to weigh Live Nation's bid for a new trial, approve the U.S. Department of Justice's March settlement with the defendants, and impose remedies that include full structural separation, say attorneys at Crowell.

• How Crypto Firms Can Prep As Clarity Act Inches Toward Law

  

  Though the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act’s road to enactment remains uncertain, the statutory framework for regulating digital commodities recently advanced by the Senate Banking Committee is now sufficiently developed that market participants can begin preparing in several areas where the complicated legislation would affect them, say attorneys at Cahill Gordon.

• Checking For AI Errors Is Now A Two-Way Street

  

  A handful of recent federal and state cases demonstrate the importance of checking for errors generated by artificial intelligence not only in your own court submissions, but also your opponent's, as well as when catching opposing counsel's AI mistakes could result in an award for attorney fees, says Tamara Barago at Hollingsworth.

• Easing Of UK Stablecoin Rules Will Encourage Crypto Growth

  

  The Bank of England’s recent decision to relax parts of its proposed framework for sterling-backed stablecoins balances innovation with financial stability, and will help the U.K. remain competitive with crypto markets across the globe, says Thomas Cattee at Gherson.

• Opinion

  SEC Enforcement Reforms Must Address Post-Wells Limbo

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent changes to how it notifies companies of a potential enforcement action fail to address what happens after the Wells process is over, highlighting the need for meaningful process reform that includes a formal closure determination, says Kimble Cannon at Mahdavi Bacon.